Mother of 3 Reflects on Her College Abortion, And Daughter’s Futures

In 2007, when she got pregnant while attending college, Kirke didn’t feel ready to raise a child, nor did she want to be permanently tied to her college boyfriend. The decision weighed down on her as she got the procedure without anesthesia. She couldn’t pull together enough money to cover the additional expense after emptying her checking account to pay for the abortion.

“We do have free choice and we are able to do what we want, but then there are these hoops we have to jump through to get [abortions],” Kirke said

Her story exposes some of the isolation many women face; at the time, she couldn’t tell her mother about the procedure.

Today, she is a mother of three. Kirke reflected on how she hopes her daughters’ experience of reproductive rights will be different from her own. She explained: “I’m already anticipating their issues with self-esteem, their issues with their body, the luggage that comes with being a woman. I would love if, when they’re older … the political issues surrounding their bodies are not there anymore, that they have one less thing to battle around their bodies.”